Chrysler Minivan Transmission Problems

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2070 messages, Last post on Jun 02, 2013 at 12:09 PM

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What is this discussion about? Chrysler Town and Country, Dodge Caravan, Plymouth Voyager, Chrysler Grand Voyager, Dodge Grand Caravan, Transmission, Van

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#87 of 2070 Transmission by greg116

May 03, 2001 (12:42 am)

Our 1990 Dodge Caravan SE 3.0L 4-speed auto had the transmission problem, right before the warranty ran out. We took it to a repair shop... not sure of the name, think it was a tire place or something... in downtown Victoria, BC. They said they saw what was wrong and could repair it, and they did. The odo just recently rolled over to 170,000KM (can anyone do the conversion to miles for me???) and the tranny's never had a problem since. Engine's in good shape too. In fact, aside from normal wear and tear, it's been pretty nice. It's only left my mother stranded once with a dead fuel pump, but other than that its been great.

#88 of 2070 I've had it with this car by belgamees

May 10, 2001 (3:00 pm)

I live in Europe (Belgium) and own a 96 dodge gran caravan se. At 70000miles transmission went bad. It wouldn't take al the gears anymore or stay constant in 3rd until you turn of the engine.
Chrysler garage says they never heard of problems like that wanting to charge me 2700$ to fix the thing. I went to an automatic specialist (there aren't much around) That guy tells me it cost 1600$ to repair. He even states that the chrysler garage brings the transmission to him to rebuilt. Torqueconverter is blown. He shows me the new piece and tells me he immediately takes it to a welder to have the piece welded like it should. He also put 100% synthetic oil in it and I did not have one problem with it yet (110000miles). He even tells me that over 50% of his work is for chrysler transmissions, he even wished me good luck because I'll need it with that transmission. But besides that I've had and still have windshield wipers starting to wipe when they feel like it, the car vibrates when i brake, except when i brake very hard, then it doesn't do it. (changed brakes and disc several times without result) The belt tensioner just broke of one day. aircontioner went bad, now I'm having problems with the starter, sometimes i have to start it 3 or 4 times before it engages,I had to take off the car alarm because it would immobilise the car while I was driving, now recently the car hasn't a stable iddle (even just stalls now and then) I even had a fire in the cockpit, couldn't see anymore of the white smoke, turned of the car, it stopped smoking, but never found where it came from, never had it again.

But besides that I can live with it.

very disappointed dodge driver

#89 of 2070 by eneth

May 10, 2001 (5:19 pm)

70,000 miles is excellent service from a Chrysler 42TE transaxle - that's probably above the mileage at which most drivers start to have troubles. Supposedly, another design fix was put in place halfway through the 2000 model year that was to fix the problems, once and for all (of course, that doesn't necessarily explain the 11.5 model years that went by before that).

#90 of 2070 but my problems started a lot earlier by belgamees

May 14, 2001 (1:06 pm)

The transmission blew at 70000, but it started not wanting to shift or just staying in one gear until I turn of the engine at 35000 miles. It had changed the oil and oil filter numerous times because the computer kept saying the oil was dirty
It anoyed me for almost 2 years before it finally gave up on me.
This was probably the best thing that could happen to it.

#91 of 2070 Has transmission problem been fixed in new vans? by twgvan

Jun 09, 2001 (7:26 am)

I've been told that Chrysler has addressed the transmission problems in the past year or so and that the failure rate is dramatically less than it was. Does anyone know if this is true? We are thinking about getting a new van to replace our 97 Voyager (the transmission just failed) and if that problem really has been addressed, we would consider buying another Chrysler van. But if it hasn't been fixed, I think we're headed in another direction - probably toward Honda. Thanks for any advice.

#92 of 2070 twgvan by hersbird

Jun 09, 2001 (5:17 pm)

I was under the impression they did make some changes in the 98 MY, I think they even changed the letter designation for it (maybe that's all they changed!) My question would be is have they fixed the Honda transmission yet? Oh well at least it fails sooner so it would still be under warranty.

#94 of 2070 Just curious by h20guy

Jun 17, 2001 (7:50 pm)

43% 1999 Honda accord transmission failure rate. Was there a recall? Where did you get your info. ? Please don't delete your post. Not trolling just asking.

#95 of 2070 by eneth

Jun 19, 2001 (5:08 pm)

Personal acquaintances and collegues, I'd guess, with a sample size of about five.

According to Consumer Reports, which collects statistical data from a larger sample pool (say, 50-100,000 times larger), the 1999 Accord rates much better than average in transmission reliability, meaning a failure rate of 2.0% or less.

The Caravan, et. al., were rated as better than average for 1999 transmission reliability, one notch lower than the Accord, with a failure rate of 2.0-5.0%.

#96 of 2070 Noise when idling in gear by norbertl

Jun 20, 2001 (8:02 am)

My 97 Caravan Sport (SOB)has 67,500 miles on it. When I idle at a traffic light, there is a loud mechanical noise, sort of like a ratcheting sound. This sound goes away completely when I step on the gas. Is this a transmission noise, or something else, and do I need to worry about it? I have noticed all other Voyagers and C&C vans do the same thing.

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